Umran Malik: The J&K bowler whose scorching pace is lighting up the IPL

It is no easy task to trouble Glenn Maxwell when he gets into the mood to hit bowlers around the park. The big Aussie was getting warmed up for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League match against Sunrisers Hyderabad, but fast bowler Umran Malik was proving to be a thorn in his side.

With Maxwell and Devdutt Padikkal steadily building a partnership, Malik threw a spanner into RCB’s run-chase with three excellent overs, making the target of 142 seem like a long way off.

In the ninth over, the speedster bowled three consecutive balls that crossed the 150kmph mark. The third of those was clocked at 153kmph, making it the fastest delivery of this year’s tournament.

He conceded just five runs off that over, returning in the 11th to part with a measly four runs.

In the first over of that spell—the seventh over of the RCB innings—Malik took the wicket of Srikar Bharat and gave away just one run.

Malik had successfully taken the sting out of the RCB onslaught in the crucial middle overs, despite other bowlers like Siddharth Kaul, Rashid Khan and Jason Holder getting hit for boundaries.

Sunrisers won the game by four runs, and both captains would heap praises on the 21-year-old bowler from Jammu and Kashmir.

SRH skipper Kane Williamson counted him as one of the positives of a largely disappointing season for his team.

“Umran certainly is special,” said Williamson. “We've seen him in the nets for a couple of seasons. [It is a] special opportunity for him and it's not surprising to see him come and do well. [He has] been a really valuable addition to the side.”

RCB captain Virat Kohli noted that it was important to track Malik’s progress from here.

“This tournament throws up talent every year. Good to see a guy bowling at 150 clicks. It is important to understand the progress of individuals from here on," Kohli said in the post-match presentation.

“The pool of fast bowlers being strong is always a good sign for Indian cricket and whenever you see talent like this, you are going to have your eyes on them and make sure you maximise their potential.”

After the game, Malik would request Kohli to autograph his jersey, the Indian captain gladly obliging.

Humble beginnings

Malik made his IPL debut against Kolkata Knight Riders on October 3, in which he bowled a 151kmph delivery, which was the fastest by an Indian in the tournament this year. He would only better that, twice, in the ninth over against RCB.

Malik is the son of a vegetable vendor in Jammu. His father told a news channel after his IPL debut that it was no ordinary achievement for their family, because of their financial status.

He was a net bowler for the Sunrisers for two years until getting his big break this week, owing to the absence of T. Natarajan who is down with Covid-19.

Malik would bowl nervously to the likes of David Warner and Kane Williamson in the SRH nets, he told the IPL’s official website.

“I prayed to god that let me bowl well to them. I thought if I have to beat them I have to hit the right length. I kept beating them and I learned from that, I kept bowling on that same length. That made a big difference,” said Malik.

Like Natarajan, Malik entered the sport as a tennis-ball cricketer. He credits this experience for his yorkers and raw pace.

In 2018, when he attended a trial for J&K U-19 players, he saw shoes with spikes for the first time. He had arrived for the trials in jogging shoes and would borrow the spikes from a friend.

The selectors took note of his abilities and he would make it to the U-19 one-day team. He would then participate in the Vijay Hazare and Syed Mushtaq Ali tournaments before being roped in by SRH as a net bowler.

There are comparisons being drawn of Malik’s action with that of legendary Pakistan pacer Waqar Younis.

Former Indian skipper Kris Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel that his “rhythmic” run-up reminded him of Younis.

“His run-up, his action everything resembles a bit of Waqar Younis's style. He has a very good rhythmic run-up and he is able to bowl at a good pace,” said Srikkanth.

Indian coaches and strength and conditioning trainers will be keeping an eye out for the young speedster to prolong his career and keep him from injuries that commonly plague bowlers with such pace.

The hype around such fast bowlers often leads to unreal expectations and eventually disappointment if they fall by the wayside. But should Malik maintain consistency, he would prove useful for the Indian team with his raw pace and excellent line and length.

(With inputs from PTI)